61 Little Known Facts About . . .

North Korea

North Korea is slightly smaller than Mississippi. It constitutes almost
55% of the Korean Peninsula, covering 46,540 square miles (120,538 km.) of the
peninsula’s 85,052 square miles (220,283 square km.).d

Founded in 1948, the official name of North Korea is the Democratic People’s
Republic of Korea (DPRK). The local name for North Korea is Choson-minjujuui-inmin-koughwaguk or Choson (“Land
of Morning Calm”).i

When Japan surrendered to the Allies on August 15, 1945, U.S. president
Truman and Soviet leader Stalin agreed that the U.S. would temporarily
act as trustee for the southern half of Korea and the Soviet Union would
act as trustee for the northern half. This temporary measure became permanent
in 1948 when North Korea declared itself an independent sovereign state
under a Communist system.c

Rapid deforestation has revealed many North Korean weapons

North Korea has experienced rapid deforestation, which has revealed many
of its long-range artillery tubes previously hidden by trees. Deforestation
is one of the major environmental crises facing North Korea.h

Though smaller in size, South Korea has a population more than double
that of North Korea.i

President and DPRK founder Kim Il-sung (1912-1994) was born Kim Song-ju,
but took the name Kim Il-sung, which means “become the sun,” in
1935. He was raised Presbyterian, and his grandfather was a Protestant
minister.d

The word Korea, which many believe Marco Polo took with him to
Europe, means “land of high mountains and sparkling streams.”n

Christmas is a nonevent in North Korea. Instead of Christmas celebrations,
many North Koreans celebrate the birth of current president Kim Jong-il’s
mother on December 24. North Koreans also do not celebrate Valentine’s
Day, but instead celebrate “The General’s Birthday” on
February 16. A popular “Valentine’s” gift between couples
is a “Worker’s Party badge” case.a,p

Though the people of North and South Korea share one language, one history,
and one cultural base that reaches back at least 5,000 years, 10 million
Koreans remain separated from family members since 1948 because of the
38th Parallel.n

Japan and Russia first suggested dividing Korea at the 38th parallel in
1896 as a way to ease tensions between the two countries. However, Japan
gained control over the entire country in 1904.d

The highest point in North Korea (in fact, all of Korea) is Mount Paektu
(“Mount of Eternal Snow”) at 9,003 feet (2,744 meters). The
mountain is sacred to all Koreans and, according to legend, it is the birthplace
of Korean civilization.i

The North Korean government strictly controls all levels of education.
The literacy rate of those aged 15 and older in North Korea is 99%.k

North Korea has a “Propaganda and Agitation Department” which
controls all communication. The government bans and jams all foreign broadcasts,
and all radio and television stations are tuned into government broadcasts.k

Women in North Korea make up 49% of the work force. Women receive five
months’ paid maternity leave, and if a woman has three or more children,
she receives eight hours of pay for six hours of work per day. In the 1990s,
there were more Korean women holding government positions than there were
American women holding comparable positions in the U.S.n

North Koreans are taught to worship Kim Jung-il as a god

North Korea officially worships Kim Jong-il, the defacto leader of North
Korea (the official leader is still his father, Kim Il-sung, who died in
1994). North Koreans are told he was born on Mount Paektu, like a mythical god. Russian records show, however, that he was actually born in Siberia.i

Kim Jong-il is only 5’ 2’’ tall. He wears four-inch lifts in his shoes
to compensate for his short stature.n

Kim Jong-il has a collection of over 20,000 movies, including all the
James Bond films.n

Kim Il-sung (1912-1994) constructed his own brand of communism called juche
sasang (self-reliance ideology), in which he combines the theories
of Marx and Lenin to North Korean politics. While juche was
initially a political ideology, it is now listed as the world’s
tenth largest religion.j

The average life expectancy of North Koreans is 61 years for males and
66 years for females.k

As of July 2010, the population of North Korea was 22,757,275, making
it the fiftieth most populated country in the world. The United States
is the third most populated in the country in the world with 310,232,863. China is the most populated country in the world, with over 1 billion
people.k

The North Korean flag was adopted in 1948 and features a red star within
a large red band and two thinner bands of white and blue on the top and
bottom of the flag. The red star represents socialism, the red band
symbolizes revolution, and the small white bands stand for purity, strength,
and dignity. The blue bands stand for sovereignty, peace, and friendship.k

North Korea houses the world’s largest flagpole, at 525’ high. The
flag it holds weighs approximately 600 pounds.f

North Korea has three Internet hosts. The United States has the most in
the world, with 439 million.k

For years, North Korea has been linked to huge shipments of heroin and
methamphetamines. In April 2003, the merchant ship Pong Su attempted to
deliver 150 kg of heroin to Australia.k

There is only one political party in North Korea, the Korean Workers Party
(KWP). Members of the party must wear a badge of the “Great Leader” (Kim
Il-sung) at all times.i

North Korea has the world’s fourth largest military

North Korea has the world’s fourth largest military, boasting more
than 10 million active personnel. With one in every 25 citizens enlisted
as a soldier, North Korea has the highest percentage of military personnel
per capita in the world. In 2001, North Korea spent over $5 billion on
its military, more than 30% of its country’s GDP. The U.S. spends
about 3.7%.k

North Korea is believed to have enough plutonium to build up to six nuclear
weapons and is close to becoming a nuclear-armed state. A fully nuclear
North Korea could trigger an East Asian arms race.m

According to U.S. intelligence, North Korea could shoot a missile capable
of striking Alaska, Hawaii, and the American West Coast. North Korea has
an estimated 5,000 pounds of biological and chemical weapons.l

In contrast to South Korea’s per capita GDP of $18,000, North Korea’s
GDP is $1,000.i

Kim Il-sung had a large inoperable calcium growth on his neck that can
still be seen on his embalmed body, which is on display in the Kumsusan
Memorial Palace. Because of its unsightly appearance, he was always photographed
from the left.i

After severe flooding in 1995, North Korea suffered a major famine, in
which the U.S. estimates that between 275,000 and two million people died.
More than 13 million people, including 60% of children in North Korea,
still suffer malnutrition.b

Military service is required in North Korea and can be fulfilled by a
5-year term in the army or navy or a 3- to 4-year term in the air force.n

Unlike in the U.S., where people sit on seesaws, both North and South
Koreans stand while playing the game.i

Kim Il-sung Square in the Pyongyang (“capital of willows”)
capital is larger than Red Square in Moscow.i

The DMZ (demilitarized zone) along the 38th parallel is the most heavily
guarded border in the world.n

The Tower of the Juche Idea is 558’ tall and was built to celebrate Kim
Il-sung’s seventieth birthday. The tower is covered with 25,550 pieces
of stone, one for each day of Kim Il-sung’s life.n

Nine out of ten North Korean women who escape to China are trafficked

Sixty to 70% of North Korean defectors who enter China are women, and
70-80% of them become victims of human trafficking. If the Chinese government
catches them, they are sent back to Korea, where they are forced into penal
colonies or executed. Any Chinese-fathered babies are executed and any
pregnancies are forcibly aborted.o

North Korean women are a major source of human trafficking in China. Prices
for North Korean women in China range from several hundred dollars to $2,000.
They are often sold to farmers or to old or disabled men.g

The manjoko (“satisfaction teams”) are made up of
young girls who receive training in sexual practices to please high-ranking
North Korean officials.d

Newlyweds in North Korea swear loyalty to both Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il.
They place a gift at the feet of a statue of Kim Il-sung.n

Contrary to the egalitarian theories of a socialist society, North Korea
divides its people into three social classes: the loyal class (top people
in the KWP, families of war heroes), the ordinary group, and the disloyal
class (those with relatives who sided with the Japanese before WWII or
whose family members have escaped North Korea). People in the disloyal
group are forced to work in mines or on farms.i

North Korea’s main employers are the government and the military.i

The official currency of North Korea is the won, from the Chinese yuan and
the Japanese yen. In an attempt to control private markets in
2009, North Korea revalued the won by replacing 1,000 won notes with 10
won notes and strictly limiting the amount of old currency that could be
used. This move effectively destroyed many people’s savings accounts.e

North Korea’s leaders have had special flowers bred in their honor.
Kim Il-sung had an orchid, kimilsungia, developed for him by an
Indonesian plant expert in 1965. In 1988, a Japanese plant expert presented
a red begonia called the kimjonilia to Kim Jong-il.i

North Korea measures the passage of years with the juche calendar.
In this calendar, year 1 is 1912, the year Kim Il-sung was born. The year
2010 is juche year 99 and would be written as Juche 99 (2010)
or Juche 99, 2010.i

The only way for citizens to leave North Korea is by escaping north over
the Chinese or Russian border, through the mine-laden DMZ into South Korea,
or by boat to Japan. In 2006, an estimated 40,000-50,000 North Koreans
were believed to be hiding in China. If they are found, the Chinese government
returns them to North Korea.d

The North Korean government pays for all health care, though recently
it has suffered a severe shortage of medicine and medical equipment. In
some hospitals, cutting-edge equipment remains unused because the doctors
and nurses don’t know how to use it.n

The Jikji printing plates are the oldest evidence of movable metal type
printing in the world. The plates were used to print books in Cheongju,
Korea, in 1377, preceding the Gutenberg Bible by 78 years.n

Since 1972, North Korean Olympic athletes have brought home nine gold,
12 silver, and 17 bronze medals. They have excelled in boxing, weightlifting,
judo, and wrestling. One of North Korea’s greatest Olympic athletes
is Kye Sun Hui. In 1996, at age 17, she became the youngest person to win
an Olympic gold medal in judo.i

Even though the Armistice Agreement of 1953 ended the fighting in the
Korean War, neither North nor South Korea signed the peace treaty; therefore,
they are still officially at war.c

In North Korea, there is one doctor for every 700 people and one hospital
bed for every 350 people. The infant mortality rate is 51.34/1,000.n

North Korea is ranked second to last on the World Press Freedom Index.
(Eritrea is last.)k

North Korean defectors have described the existence of prison camps, where
torture, rape, forced abortions and infanticide, forced labor, and medical
experimentation have taken place.g

North Korea calls the Korean War the Fatherland Liberation War, while
the United States calls it the Forgotten War or Unknown War. South Korea
calls it the 6-2-5 War (yuk-i-o jeonjaeng), which refers to its June 5
starting date.c